Troublemaker
by Fabled Wings
Summary: Set during episode 50. Akari has some important questions for an old friend of hers.


Troublemaker

Akari was mad.

At that very second, she should have been at home, seated at the dining table with her grandma, having a quiet dinner while Obomi dusted the couch cushions. She would then make herself some coffee and start work on the many articles she had to write before her boss hounded for them the next day. Left in the peace and solitude of her workroom that would only be disturbed by the familiar clatter of her fingers upon her keyboard.

Instead, Akari was zooming down the main highway on her motorcycle, gripping the handlebars tighter than it was necessary. If her dear brother hadn't revealed that bit of information to her, she would have remained in the dark for who knows how long.

* * *

"_I'm back, sis!"_

"_Hey, what happened to that guy?" Akari asked as Yuuma entered the house with a bounce in his step. It was already nine in the evening. _

"_The… oh, III," Yuuma said. A giddy grin formed on his face as he pulled his socks off. "We dueled, and I won, and now I have enough Heart Pieces to enter the finals!" He took out his Heart Pieces and waved them in his sister's face._

_Akari rolled her eyes and lightly swatted Yuuma's hand away. She was glad for her younger brother, yes; after all, he had always had a passion for dueling, even doing it behind her back when she forbade it, and now that he's advancing closer to his goal, she couldn't be more proud as an older sister. Akari believed that Yuuma could do it – his resolve to never give up was a deciding factor in accomplishing whatever he had set his mind to. He had his father's genes, after all._

"_Yeah, that's great and all," she said with a nonchalant front, "but who was that guy… III, I think his name was? He just ran off crying in the middle of dinner!"_

"… _Well, how should I put it…" Yuuma scratched the back of his head, scrunching up his forehead. "His family's condition isn't very favourable right now, and watching us reminded him of what his family used to be like – like us. And then he challenged me to a duel, which I won."_

"_That's all?"_

"_That's all."_

_Akari crossed her arms. She was sure Yuuma was leaving out important parts of the story, and the only reason he would do that was to protect his friend. While she respected that, she had the feeling that there was something that she should have knowledge of, and Yuuma was keeping mum about it. "How's his family like?"_

"_He has two older brothers. Both are in the finals. The oldest, he-" Yuuma stood with his mouth agape for a second, as if he wanted to say something more, but then pressed his lips together._

"_What is it?" Akari pressed._

"_His oldest brother, V… he was the one who said dad was alive."_

_Akari's eyes widened. When she received that bit of news from Kotori, she didn't dare to get her hopes raised. Now that she knew the information's source…_

"_This… V person," she said, briefly wondering if III and V's parents were on crack when they named their children, "what else did he say?"_

"_He refused to reveal anything else!" Yuuma groused, slumping on the couch. "All he said was that dad's alive, in the Astral World…"_

"_The Astral World?" Akari shot Yuuma a sceptical look. She slapped a palm to her creased forehead. "The situations you and dad get into…"_

"_I wanted to find out if what he said was true," Yuuma slouched. "If dad really is still alive…"_

"_How does this guy look like?"_

_Yuuma looked to his left. "Um, he's this really tall guy… a hundred and eighty-five centimetres… seventy kilograms… long hair, extremely long, pale hair… coloured bangs? Purple and blue bangs that fall around his face…"_

_Akari prided herself in being able to remember the appearance of every person she meets. There was something familiar about V, but try as she might she couldn't seem to place her finger on it. "What about his eyes?"_

"_His eyes?" Yuuma looked to his left again. "Blue. Sharp, blue eyes."_

_Akari was starting to get a very bad feeling. "And he wears blue clothing."_

"… _Yeah, sis. How did you know that?"_

"_Just… just a wild guess," Akari waved a hand awkwardly. "Go to sleep early, alright?"_

"_Yeah, I know," Yuuma moved from the couch and skipped up the stairs. "'Night sis!"_

"_Night," she shouted up the stairs, then occupied the spot Yuuma had just vacated. Akari rested her chin in her hands._

_Heartland City was a metropolis of vibrancy and variety, so much so that even her citizens looked uniquely different from one another; rarely would a person bump into someone with the exact eye colour and hair style. From Yuuma's description of V, Akari could only come to one conclusion what his real identity was._

"_Christopher Arclight…" she closed her eyes and whispered under her breath. "What have you been up to?"_

* * *

Akari's years of experience as a member of the paparazzi taught her the skills to sneak into any public event without attracting any attention to herself. It helped that those two goons flanking the entrance weren't as alert as they should be, one of them already trying to slap himself awake and the thinner one covering a huge yawn with a hand. She slipped past them easily and entered the ballroom without any hitches.

The place was huge, elaborately decorated with many pink hearts, the symbol of Heartland City. A huge cake towered over everyone in the middle of the room, more for show than anything else, although Akari had no doubt it would be more than enough to feed the dozens of guests that had been invited to the party.

Akari placed herself beside a pillar and scanned the crowd. Tall, pale long hair, blue outfit. It shouldn't be too difficult to find him. She had spotted her younger brother immediately; Yuuma was hanging out with his friends at the foot of a staircase. She had to make sure that Yuuma remained unaware of her presence.

There were too many people, Akari decided, for an event that only concerned duelists. She recognized a few faces she had interviewed in the past, some of them ranked officials in political and social circles, and glimpsed the faces of a couple of celebrities. Formalities.

"Christopher Arclight, you are not getting away from me," Akari growled under her breath as she stomped. The party had started only half an hour ago, surely he would still be around somewhere…

Speak of the devil, and he will appear to you. Just as Akari whipped around to search in another part of the room, she collided into someone's chest.

"Sorry," she rushed out, and made to side-step whoever she had bumped into, and did a double-take. Akari tilted her head up to have a good look at the person's face.

Just as she thought.

"It's been a long time," he started. V stood imposingly over her, at least a head taller. "You're as insistent as ever."

"And you, what's up with this?" she splayed her hands out in front of her, gesturing to V's outfit. A snort escaped from her lips. "This isn't a costume party, you know."

"I am well aware, thank you."

"… You didn't even answer the question."

"…"

"… Anyway, we need to talk," Akari grabbed his arm, tugging V along to a more secluded area in the ballroom, where they could converse in privacy. She was mildly surprised that he showed no sign of resistance.

Chris, as Akari used to know him, hadn't changed much. The only significant change was the apparent height difference that had only grown wider over the years. (And the gaudy outfit, but that wasn't too important. She hoped.) He still talked in a slight higher-than-thou manner, and had that same impassive expression on his face. His preference for the colour blue was also apparent.

Six years could change a lot in anyone. Akari could not begin to imagine what had happened to Chris- _V_ during that time, but she was glad that he had acknowledged her. V must have already known that she would be knocking at his door with all that had been happening lately.

Akari let go of him and turned to face him. "You know something about dad, don't you?"

"I'm sure your younger brother has already told you," V replied. "There's nothing else I have to say."

"As if," Akari narrowed her eyes and seized his collar with both hands, leaning her face into his. "Where. Is. My. Father?"

"… That is not for me to tell," V reached up and lightly pried her fingers away one by one. "Unfortunately, I do not have a clue either."

"Who was it that told you that my father's still alive, then?"

"My father was the last person to see Kazuma Tsukumo, thus he's the only one that could give you an answer."

"Then take me to him!"

"I would advise you not to approach him. My father is… not quite himself right now. It would be dangerous."

Akari sagged her shoulders. She said in a soft voice, "Chris, what happened to you?"

"It's a long story, one that I do not have the time to relate at this moment," V let a flicker of a smile cross his features. "However, it is good to see you again."

"Yeah? I'm not sure if it's good to see you," Akari scoffed, then smiled wryly. "You've grown so tall! No way will I be able to piggy-back you now."

"Did you have to bring that up?" V rolled his eyes, letting his mask slip a little. Akari smiled inwardly. The Chris she remembered was surfacing.

"Mm-hm. And your hair – when Yuuma said it was long I did not expect that it would reach past your _ankles_! And the way it shines – how on earth do you manage it?"

"… It's a secret."

"Tch."

Akari had missed this. Other than Tetsuko, V- _Chris_ was probably the only other person in school that she talked to on a regular basis. Their light banter was one of the factors that kept their friendship going strong, even after Chris had left to apprentice under his father, but he had abruptly cut all communication one day. It was soon after that Akari met Charlie, and she had put any thought of Chris in the back burner until recent times.

"… You're not going to tell me what I want to know, are you?"

"I'm under strict orders to not say anything. Please understand that," V directed his gaze across the ballroom. "Your brother is a duellist with plenty of potential. Perhaps if he progresses far enough in the finals… maybe then, he will find the answer to your questions."

The room gradually descended into darkness. A door in the gallery opened to reveal Mr. Heartland; a projection of himself appeared and illuminated the room as he shouted his catchphrase amid applause and pink hearts. Next was the obligatory welcome speech, complete with Mr. Heartland's trademark exaggerated gestures and over-enthusiasm; just as he was about to introduce the finalists, the projection fizzed out, shrouding the room in darkness once more.

Akari heard Chris grunt beside her. In that instant, Akari knew something was up.

However, she couldn't quite make head or tails to what she next witnessed. It definitely seemed worthy of a scoop, but Akari would have to think a little deeper into how she would write her report that night.

A child's laughter echoed through the room. Two spotlights flicked on and shone upon someone – a young child with a braid, reminiscent of how Chris used to style his hair, and an equally gaudy outfit as Chris's. He (she?) gave off an ominous aura; as he toddled down the aisle, people stepped back from him, unsure as to whether he was a threat or not. That was odd in itself – children in general weren't supposed to send chills down your spine.

"He's actually doing it," Chris whispered, slapping a palm to his forehead. Akari sent him a curious look he couldn't see, when the child suddenly cried, "a giant cake!"

Complete silence had permeated the room ever since the child announced his presence, only disrupted by the sound of the child's shoes clacking against the floor. He went up the stairs and exchanged a few words with Mr. Heartland. He called himself 'Tron'.

Tron did that creepy laugh of his and declared his love for cake once again. When he addressed Yuuma in particular, however, Akari felt disturbed. She forced down the urge to rush over to Yuuma, her sisterly protectiveness threatening to overcome her, but Tron then left as suddenly as he had arrived.

"That was… strange," Akari mumbled as the lights came back on again, the room filled with murmurs of the guests questioning what on earth had happened earlier. "Any idea what just happened there, Chris? … Chris?"

She received no reply. The spot where Chris stood a mere few seconds ago had been vacated. Akari rushed after his retreating back.

"Hey, at least say goodbye before you run off somewhere!" She placed a hand on his shoulder. "I don't want a repeat of six years ago."

Chris turned his body slightly to meet her eyes. "… I go by the name 'V' now. And it's best if we don't see each other at all."

"Why can't you tell me _anything_?" Akari bit out. "We're still friends, aren't we?"

Chris- _V_ stayed silent as he took a step forward. There was some commotion going on in the ballroom, but Akari turned a blind eye, focusing on her old friend.

"Where are you going?"

"That's none of your business."

"… If that's what you want…"

Her hand fell back to her side as she stared at the floor. She wasn't able to get anything out of V, but he hadn't avoided her.

"I have a request, however," V said. "Please do not use what just happened as a scoop."

Akari blinked. She hadn't mentioned anything about her occupation this entire time. "… Sure."

"Thank you," he turned around, arms lifting as if he was going to hug her, but placed his hands on her shoulders instead. "Keep well, Akari."

"You too, Chr- I mean, V."

"Call me anything you like," Chris half-smiled as he removed himself and walked away.

_Call you anything I like, huh…_ Akari grinned.

"Idiot!"

* * *

A/N: Well, this is the fastest I've been able to complete a fic of this length! Um, I don't really have anything to add... right! There are two prequels to Troublemaker that are still in the works, so look out for them!


End file.
